New Mexico man honored for Vietnam War sacrifice five decades later

CARLSBAD, N.M. - It's been 47 years since Clark David Franklin became a casualty of war, but his name will be revered forever by visitors to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Thanks to the efforts of his former shipmates, Franklin is one of four men whose names were added to the commemorative wall last week.

U.S. Navy ABE3 (Aviation Boatswain's Mate Third Class) Franklin died April 24, 1966, while aboard the U.S.S. Ranger in the Gulf of Tonkin. The ship was preparing to launch the first strike of the day against targets in South Vietnam when Franklin moved underneath an aircraft to help a crewman who was experiencing difficulty hooking the aircraft to a catapult. The catapult fired, and Franklin was killed instantly.

Franklin's death was originally ruled a training accident, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Communications Director Lee Allen said, but was recently acknowledged as a death in a combat-related mission, qualifying Franklin for a spot on the wall.

Jimmie Stokes of Franklinton, La., was Franklin's shipmate and petitioned the U.S. Navy and the Department of Defense to have Franklin honored on the wall.

James Lee, an engraver from Colorado, added Franklin's name to the memorial last week, but Allen said Franklin and the three other men who died in the Vietnam War will be recognized in conjunction with a Mother's Day ceremony at 10 a.m. Sunday to honor military and Gold Star mothers. Speakers at the event will include Terry DeLance, another of Franklin's shipmates.

Based on the information the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund gathered from Franklin's shipmates and the DOD's records, Franklin was active in many school programs and in junior bowling in Carlsbad at a young age.

In high school, he also developed a love for cars and racing and continued to race cars after he joined the Navy in January 1962. Franklin's friends said he won many trophies in car racing, but his life's ambition was to win the Indy 500.

According to a news release written by Allen, Franklin was scheduled to be released from active military duty during his ship's next in-port period, but on April 23 - one day before his death - Franklin requested to have his overseas tour extended.

Sunday's ceremony will be a solemn event for the public to commemorate the lives of the men and women who have died fighting for this country's freedom, Allen said. As the names of the fallen soldiers are read, what is known of their life stories will be told as well.

Allen said it will be an educational and inspirational ceremony.

Also being added to the wall are Marine Sgt. Dennis R. Siverling, of Ladysmith, Wis., Army Spc. Raymond Clark Thompson, of West Palm Beach, Fla., and Marine PFC Lester James Veazey, of Enid, Okla.